The present invention relates generally to a ball glove for baseball, softball and other sports. In particular, the present invention relates to a ball glove having a plurality of finger stalls with reinforcing members and a wrist pad having a plurality of spaced apart compressible projections.
Ball gloves for use in baseball, softball and other sports are well known. Ball gloves typically include a front panel connected to a corresponding back panel to form a hand cavity. The front and back panels typically generally resemble the shape of a human hand and when assembled form five stalls for receiving the thumb and fingers of a user""s hand. The front and back panels form a hand opening at the lower edge of the glove. The back panel typically includes a strap or a lower region that generally conforms to the wrist of the user. A webbing is typically connected between the thumb stall and the index finger stall of the ball glove. Ball gloves also typically include a hand opening for enabling a user to insert his or her hand into the hand cavity of the ball glove, and, often, an index finger hole for enabling the user""s index finger to rest on the back portion of the index finger stall during use.
Many existing ball gloves have drawbacks. First, the finger stalls of many ball gloves can be too flexible, and, as a result, will have a tendency to bend backwards when impacted by a ball, particularly, when the ball impacts the forward ends of the finger stalls. This backward bending or flexing of the finger stalls can cause the ball, that otherwise would be retained by the glove, to drop. Further, such backward bending can cause the player""s fingers to overextend, or otherwise injure the player""s fingers. Others have attempted to address this issue by connecting multiple layers of different types of material to further strength the finger stalls and the back panel of the ball glove. Such attempts have resulting in finger stalls of great complexity and multiple materials, increased weight, numerous outwardly extending projections, and/or inefficient positioning of support material.
Further, ball gloves often include a hand-opening of a fixed size which can often be loose on the user""s wrist. As a result, such ball gloves are easily mispositioned on the user""s hand and are susceptible to falling off the user""s hand, particularly young users. In an effort to overcome this drawback, many ball gloves include fastening mechanisms for tightening or reducing the size of the hand opening around the user""s wrist after the user""s hand is inserted into the glove. The fastening mechanisms typically take the form of at least one strap, which is secured to the glove at one end and is releasably secured to the glove at a second end with a releasable fastener. The releasable fasteners can include buttons, snap-fit connectors, buckles, or hook and loop type fasteners. Other ball gloves include a resiliently expandable hand opening which enables the user to place his or her hand within the glove and then the hand opening reduces in size to generally conform to the user""s wrist. Still other gloves have a hand-opening of a fixed size that is sized to be just large enough for the user""s hand to enter the glove.
Ball gloves with adjustable fastening mechanisms at the hand opening, with resiliently expandable hand openings, or with a hand-opening of a small fixed size, often can conform so well to the user""s wrist that they can irritate the user""s wrist. Further, such gloves can also cause the user""s hand to perspire excessively or to generally overheat. In an effort to make such gloves more comfortable, many gloves include inner wrist panels or pads intended to cushion the contact between the user""s wrist and the back panel or strap of the back panel. Such cushioned wrist pads, while softening the contact between the glove and the user""s wrist, can also significantly restrict or block air flow into and out of the ball glove, thereby further causing the user""s hand to further perspire or overheat.
Thus, there is a continuing need for a ball glove having a finger stalls with reinforcing members optimally positioned on the back portion of the finger stalls to inhibit rearward bending of the finger stalls upon impact with a ball, without negatively affecting the weight, comfort, appearance or performance of the glove. There is also a need for a ball glove having a wrist pad that comfortably conforms to the wrist of the user without causing the user""s hand within the glove to over heat or excessively perspire. It would be advantageous to provide a ball glove with finger stalls that easily flex in a forward or closing position but restrict or inhibit rearward bending. What is also needed is a ball glove having a wrist pad that facilitates the insertion and removal of the user""s hand within the glove. It would also be advantageous to provide a ball glove that provides these advantages and also provides the ball glove with an improved, more appealing aesthetic.
The present invention provides a ball glove for use by a player to facilitate catching a ball. The ball glove includes front and back glove portions, first, second and third elongate reinforcing members, and a webbing. The front glove portion is coupled to the back glove portion to define a hand cavity and to form first, second, third and fourth finger stalls and a thumb stall. Each finger stall includes a front stall portion and a back stall portion, and each back stall portion includes a distal region and a proximal region. The first, second, and third elongate reinforcing members are coupled to the back stall portions of the first, second and third finger stalls, respectively. The first member has a length that is shorter than each of the second and third members. The first reinforcing member is positioned at the distal region of the back stall portion of the first finger stall, and the second and third members extend along the distal and proximal regions of the back stall portions of the second and third finger stalls, respectively. The elongate reinforcing members inhibit rearward bending of the finger and thumb stalls upon impact with the ball during use. The webbing is coupled to, and positioned between, the first finger stall and the thumb stall.
According to a principal aspect of a preferred form of the invention, a ball glove includes front and back glove portions, at least one elongate reinforcing member and a webbing. The back glove portion is coupled to the front glove portion to define a hand cavity and to form a plurality of finger stalls and a thumb stall. Each finger stall includes a front stall portion and a back stall portion. One of the elongate reinforcing member is coupled to the back stall portion of one of the finger stalls and the thumb stall. Each reinforcing member includes at least two reinforcing member segments that are positioned end to end along the stall. A webbing is coupled to, and positioned between, one of the finger stalls and the thumb stall.
According to another principal aspect of a preferred form of the invention, a ball glove for receiving a hand, and generally conforming to a wrist of a user, includes front and back portions, and a wrist pad. The front portion has a front lower edge. The back portion is coupled to the front portion to form a hand cavity. The back portion has a back lower region having inner and outer surfaces. The wrist pad is coupled to the inner surface of the lower back region. The wrist pad includes a plurality of inwardly extending projections. The projections are spaced apart to define at least one channel.